Do you know your moles?

by CHARLOTTE DOVEY, Daily Mail

"As the majority of melanomas develop from existing moles, monitoring your moles should be as high a priority as a woman checking her breasts or a man checking his testicles," says Anne Sullivan, a Macmillan clinical nurse who specialises in skin cancer.

"Melanoma is the most dangerous skin cancer, but it's also one of the few cancers you can spot before it is too late. This means there's a good chance of diagnosis and treatment."

Over the past 15 years the incidience of malignant melanoma - mainly caused by exposure to UV rays from the sun or sunbeds - has increased at an alarming rate.

Every year, 6,000 people are diagnosed and the condition kills about 1,000 Britons a year.

It is important, says Anne, to take the risk seriously.

"People think that because it's on the skin, melanoma is merely a surface cancer," she adds.

"But actually, it's one of the most aggressive cancers. When left untreated, it can spread through the lymphatic system, into the lymph nodes, and then straight into the liver, lungs, brain and bones."

Changes in moles are normally seen over a period of several weeks to months, not over several days.

Malignant melanomas are usually due to too much sun exposure, so, for women, the commonest site for one to develop is the legs. Men are more likely to have one on their backs.

But they can develop anywhere on the body, even on the soles of the feet, and under finger and toe nails.

Now there are clinics using a system known as computer-assisted dermoscopy, which helps GPs to confirm whether a mole is at risk of malignant melanoma and whether a biopsy is truly necessary. It is known as risk analysis.

The process, which involves a small hand-held camera placed against each mole, is painless and non-invasive and provides an image of the entire body of the mole - not just the surface.

This allows the clinician to view layers of the skin below the surface and detect changes not visible to the naked eye.

"Most moles, both normal and abnormal, never turn cancerous. It is important, however, to keep abnormal moles under review and to be able to recognise the warning signs. If in doubt, go and see your GP."

Good Health sent four women to two clinics, Mole Monitor and The Mole Clinic, offering computer-assisted dermoscopy to have their mole risk analysed.

Follow the links below to discover their results.

CHECKS YOU MUST MAKE

Contact your GP if your are worried about a mole, but in particular look out for moles that are:

Getting bigger

Changing shape - particularly if it isbecoming more irregular in shape

Changing colour - getting darker, becoming patchy or multi-shaded

Itching or painful

Bleeding or becomingcrusty

Looking inflamed

More women get melanomas than men, but your risk is also increased if you have: